The time is ripe: Get the most from your garden

The first time I tried growing potatoes, I went to the garden one day to find that all of them had withered and died. I wailed about it to my husband, a veteran of more childhood potato digging than he'd care to remember. He just laughed and said, "Honey, that means they're ready."

After sowing, planting, tending and nurturing your edibles through the growing season, you'd think that harvesting would be the easy part. It turns out that there's more to picking peppers than you think. Getting the most from your efforts involves timing and technique.

Checking the seed packet or plant label for "days to maturity" gives you an idea of when you can expect to pick, but you need to use all your senses to know what to pick when. Use this guide to help you harvest:

Bushy culinary herbs like thyme, oregano, marjoram, lavender, rosemary and mint benefit from regular harvesting throughout the season. While providing tasty sprigs for cooking, harvesting also helps shape the plant and stimulate new growth. Stick with the rule of thirds: Never take more than 1/3 of the plant at a time.

Chives should be cut near the bottom of the plant to avoid unsightly yellow leaf tips. Pinch out basil tips regularly for pesto, caprese salads and other dishes. That keeps the plant from flowering. Harvest all remaining leaves before the first killing frost.

To harvest seeds for kitchen use from dill, fennel and cilantro, allow the seedheads to turn brown, then shake the clusters over a paper bag. Separate the chaff by rubbing the seeds across a kitchen sieve.

Leaf lettuces, spinach, chard, mesclun and other salad greens can be harvested much of the season using the "cut and come again" method. Cut a few leaves off each plant, making a mixed salad by never taking more than one-third of any plant. After picking, plunge lettuce in cold water to loosen dirt and any insects that hitch a ride on the leaves, then pat them dry and store in a cloth or plastic bag in the crisper drawer of your fridge.

Use the outer leaves of kale as the plant grows, letting new shoots fill out from the center. Leave some for later in the season. Light frosts sweeten the flavor of these mineral-rich leaves.

Cut broccoli heads from the stem at a slant, when the heads are firm and before they loosen. Cauliflower heads should be cut once they go from hard to just firm. Brussels sprouts should be harvested starting at the bottom of the stalk once they are big enough to snap off.

Radishes, beets, carrots and turnips are all easier to harvest after a rain or watering. Pull baby beets and turnips at 1 inch in diameter for a tender taste or wait until beets are fully mature, at 2 to 3 inches. Beets and carrots can be stored in a dark, cool place.

Tiny new potatoes can be harvested once flowers appear on the vines. Main crop potatoes should be dug once the plants die. It is best to harvest them when the soil is dry, to avoid muddy potatoes that spoil sooner.

To harvest, use a spade or a garden fork to dig carefully for the first tubers. Test the skin for thickness. If the skin is very thin and rubs off, use these potatoes quickly but wait a few days to harvest the rest of them. Let them air-dry in a shaded place without removing the soil, then store in a cool, dry place.

Pinch pea or bean pods off the vines or clip them with small pruners to avoid breaking plant stems. Pick peas every day or so to avoid tough, yellowed pods that lose sweetness. Pick snow or snap peas while they're still flat before the peas inside swell.

For best taste, beans also should also be picked frequently while still slender and tender. If you plan to dry them, wait until the pods turn brown, then harvest the beans and store them in an airtight jar in a cool, dry place.

Once the vines start producing, cucumbers and zucchinis seem to double in number and size overnight. Pick them daily to keep them from growing too large and woody. All summer squash can be picked when they're still babies.

Vine-ripened tomatoes with deep color taste best, but greener tomatoes can be picked and ripened on a countertop if pests or weather are a problem. The cardinal rule for storing tomatoes is simple: Don't refrigerate!

If you still have unripened tomatoes late in the season and fried green tomatoes don't thrill you, hang whole plants upside down in your basement to ripen. Or wrap each green tomato in a sheet of newspaper until it turns red.

Melons with netted skin slip from the stem when ripe. Smooth-skinned melons require a sniff test for that distinctive yummy smell. Since melons don't sweeten after they're harvested, it's important to pick them at the peak of perfection.

Watermelons are ready when the ground spot on the belly goes from green to white or creamy yellow. Another sign is when the tendril at the base of the stem attached to the fruit turns brown.

These big beauties are ready when the stems dry and shrivel. Cut them off the vines leaving 2 to 3 inches of stem. Cure them by spreading them out to air-dry for a week or two. Be sure to bring them indoors before the first frost.